When put unto a new artist, it takes a great level of ear-catching appeal to be drawn to their sound, especially because more than ever, there’s enough music being churned out every day than money being minted in the central bank. However, this isn’t the case for JDB, a Nigerian based hip-hop rapper who’s self-convinced that he’s next to disrupt the scene. His ego isn’t just the only feature that seems to annunciate this, his sound does too. Barely a year after the release of his sophomore project ‘Party Pack’, JDB is certain his listeners and new fans alike deserve more, hence his 2022 debut— a 6 track reloaded version of the previous.
Perhaps it’s still breakfast season especially in the Afrobeats scenes, but JDB can’t seem to find a borderline just yet as he shuffles between good, bad, vicious and lustful times. One minute he is reminiscing about a love once shared, next track he’s the Don with a stash load of money competing for Escobar’s crown. Track-after- track, his cadence and flow are gritty, exciting and intoxicating; so much that he’s able to draw you into his own universe, far away from what your typical homegrown trap artist or rapper will offer.
JDB—real name Onyebuchi Nwonu grew up being influenced by western and indigenous rap music, notably from Olamide and Lil Wayne, a cross genre-fication that is steadily noticeable in his music. He’s mostly caught between rapping about his real-life experiences, his love life and his self-acclaimed gangsterism. For him, music is a way to let out a conundrum of emotions and experiences that he believes his audience can relate to. This is easily felt on Party Pack Reloaded, as he takes his listeners down a trippy slope, infiltrating genres and bending flows. The project is solely driven by jumpy basslines, lush piano arrangements and ethereal trap-infused harmonies, held together excellently by his infectious melodic rap flow and gripping storytelling lyrics.
One moment you think it’s Rema, another moment you’re sure it’s Santi and at some point, you’d swear it’s Lil Uzi Vert, all these are testament to JDB’s versatility—a distinctive feature he’s sure puts him in a class of his own. For JDB, his music is the food of the soul, an essential instrument for communicating life’s pleasures. This drop sets the pace for even more radical offerings as he prepares to take the African and international music scenes by storm in subsequent releases; but for now, there are enough goodies to go round in Party Pack Reloaded.
